The wintry weather in New York City was a bit of a challenge for the Rye family from Florida, but Joel Rye said it didn't stop his family from making memories at the Inheritance of Hope Legacy Retreat® in November 2013.

“We'll always remember all the people of IoH being so loving and giving,” he said. “It was just stress free.”

The past two years have been particularly challenging for Joel's family. Almost a decade after doctors first discovered melanoma on his ear, Joel learned his cancer had spread. Doctors said he had mere months to live.

Kassandra Spears has battled cancer for most of her life. The 44-year-old mother of two from Port Lavaca, Texas, discovered a melanoma spot on her neck at age 15. She underwent surgery and appeared to be cured. Two decades later, Kassandra had married her husband Andy and was caring for her two kids, 12-year-old Ashley and 9-year-old Steven, when cancer came back in 2008.